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Nobody frickin' knows. Only 28% of Americans could locate Iran on an unlabeled map of the Mideast Region (men 38%, women 20%). Just 23% could find the country on a map of the world.
Based on personal anecdotal evidence, most people, young and old, males and females, suck at geography. It certainly is not limited to the ME countries.
A survey of 2000 US people ( larger sampling than the survey cited) concluded:
I could locate Iran on an unlabeled map but that doesn’t mean much. I would struggle to locate Serbia, Georgia, Uzbekistan, and Guyana. I know the regions they are in but to pick them out on an unlabeled map would be 50/50.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mach50
It's because Americans don't travel, many just live here in the bubble.
Americans have been taught that the world is a big, frightening place.
If you live in Europe,Berlin is pretty much central, and you can get from Berlin to any major city in Europe in under 4 hours for less than 200 dollars.
A trip from my local airport to mexico city is 6 hours and $569
A flight to toronto is 4 hours and 23 minutes at $224
Traveling isnt free. You need money to do it.
That being said, Americans not traveling isnt the problem.
Plenty of Youtube videos that show people around the world are horrible at geography outside of their own continent.
That begs the question: how can you justify going to war against a nation you know nothing about?
No sane person ever wants to go to war whether you know where the country is or not....but you have to defend yourself or surrender to those more brutal.
Embarrassing...apparently no world/US geography elementary education anymore? Maybe getting a stamp album/collecting stamps should be mandatory for kids for a year? A great way to learn geography outside of school.
Maps are everywhere though. It amazes me that people aren't curious enough about the world to look at them and find out where stuff is on their own.
I mean, I see your point. And count me among those who can locate Iran on a map, but I don't get worked up that most can't. I mean, how in the world does knowing where Iran is on a map help the average person?
I bet the families and friends of every service man and woman who are serving/served in the Middle East, especially those who lost loved ones, knows where Iran is.
You will be amazed how many actually do not, or even could point out where their family member was, or even knew anything about the place aside the two minutes allotted to it on the evening news.
Geography is a hobby, no different than sports and entertainment.
Yeah, but I'd imagine people would be more interested.
Not all hobbies require hard core dedication.
In fact most people are too dedicated to sports and entertainment, as if its filling a void in their life.
That leaves little room for anything else.
That being said Americans find politics exhausting, not interesting. That's why they will never engage in anything adjacent to it.
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